•Rescue workers at the site of the building collapse, today
Six persons have been injured following the collapse of a two-storey building under construction in Jikwoyi, within the Abuja Municipal Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory.
The building caved in around 11 a.m. today while workers were on site, triggering an emergency response from relevant authorities, reports The PUNCH.
The Federal Capital Territory Emergency Management Department said in a statement by its Head of Public Affairs, Nkechi Isa, that rescue operations are underway to ensure no one is left trapped in the rubble.
“Rescue efforts are ongoing to ensure no person is trapped in the rubble of a collapsed two-storey building in Jikwoyi, Abuja Municipal Area Council of the FCT,” the agency stated.
According to FEMD, 17 workers were on the upper floor of the structure at the time of the incident.
“FEMD Search and Rescue Team say that 17 workers were on the upper floor of the building when it collapsed, injuring five workers and trapping a lone male who was at the ground level of the building,” the statement added.
The injured workers, along with the rescued male, were taken to the Sisters of Nativity Hospital in Jikwoyi, where they are said to be responding to treatment.
Emergency responders at the scene include the FCT Emergency Management Department, National Emergency Management Agency, Department of Development Control, Engineering Department of the Federal Capital Development Authority, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Federal Fire Service, and the FCT Police Command.
Authorities said excavation at the site is “still ongoing until ground zero to ensure that no person is trapped in the rubble,” the statement read.
In a separate development, a fire outbreak engulfed part of a car sales and service centre along the Kubwa Expressway in the Bwari Area Council.
According to the statement, the incident occurred at about 12 noon on Friday at the premises of Car Earloha Chery Centre located at Arab Junction, Kubwa.
According to FEMD Head of Search and Rescue Team, Monday Adie, “no lives were lost in the fire incident” the statement noted.
Staff of the centre reportedly moved vehicles out of the premises after initial efforts to contain the fire with extinguishers proved unsuccessful.
A section of the building was completely razed, with equipment and documents destroyed in the blaze. Authorities attributed the cause of the fire to an electrical fault.
FEMD, the Federal Fire Service, FCT Fire Service, and the FCT Police Command were present at the scene to manage the situation.
